Glendon Chair in Canadian Cultural Landscapes Colin Coates is one of four York Canada Research Chairs renewed

The federal government has renewed four Canada Research Chairs (CRC) held by York University Professors Colin Coates, Sergey Krylov, Janine Marchessault and Jim Whiteway, whose research projects range from health and digital media to Canadian cultural history and atmospheric science.

As Tier 2 CRCs, each professor will receive $500,000 over five years, for a total of $2 million awarded to York. The renewal is part of a package of CRC appointments announced on Sept. 30. In all, the government has invested $116 million to fund the appointment of 123 new and renewed Canada Research Chairs at 38 Canadian universities, including $4.47 million in infrastructure funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation essential to the projects being conducted by 25 of the chairs.

"These CRC renewals recognize the excellence of York’s research in science, social science and the humanities," said Stan Shapson, vice-president research & innovation at York. "Federal research investments are crucial to attracting and retaining the world's best researchers. Programs such as the Canada Research Chairs also allow us to sustain York's globally competitive research programs while enabling research that has an impact upon Canadians' quality of life and the country's economic and social well-being."

Colin Coates (left), Chair in Canadian Cultural Landscapes and professor of Canadian Studies at Glendon College, explores how Old World cultures are translated to New World environments, and the ways in which European political and environmental approaches were transformed by their placement in the Canadian context. He also conducts research on colonial political culture in New France, examines the environmental and cultural implications of utopian experiments throughout Canadian history, and considers the environmental implications and cultural significance of common and public lands, providing leadership for research and debate in this area of sustained public concern.

The other three Canada Research Chairs renewed at York are held by Janine Marchessault, Chair in Art, Digital Media and Globalization and professor of film in the Faculty of Fine Arts; Sergey Krylov, Chair in Bioanalytical Chemistry and professor in the Faculty of Science & Engineering; and Jim Whiteway, Chair in Space Engineering & Atmospheric Science and professor in the Faculty of Science & Engineering.

Researchers at York University hold a total of 28 Canada Research Chairs, including Professor Jianhong Wu’s chair in Industrial & Applied Mathematics, which was renewed earlier this year. The Canada Research Chair program is designed to attract the best talent from Canada and around the world, helping universities achieve research excellence in natural sciences, engineering, health sciences, social sciences and humanities.